Keep Hanging On
by WTFunk
Summary: The only thing you have left, the only thing you can hang on to, is hope.


I loved waking up.

Waking up meant the start of a new, sun-shiny day.

It meant seeing all my friends, and making new ones.

Every day for me was an exhilarating adventure.

So, I sat up. What exciting journey did the day have in store for me?

"I'm ready!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

My voice resonated around the room.

Why did I always shout out that phrase every single day?

I don't know. Maybe, when people heard me, they would feel the joy that I had. Then, maybe that joy would go inside their own hearts.

Yeah, that's it.

I loved it when I make people happy.

So, I yelled it once more, with even more vigour than usual. I wanted to make sure that everyone could hear it.

"I'm ready!"

Then, silence.

Everything was quiet.

I couldn't hear the sound of snails meowing, or worms barking.

There were no jellyfish buzzing.

No clams flying in the sky, chirping as if they were singing a song.

I couldn't even hear Squidward play a tune with his clarinet, like he usually did during Sundays, or whenever he could.

The only thing I could hear was the breeze.

It was like everyone and everything just decided that this was the best day to shut up.

I started to feel a little lonely.

I couldn't even hear Gary purr softly as he does whenever he sleeps.

"Wait, Gary?"

I pulled myself to the edge of my bed. Gary was sleeping rather quietly today.

"Hey Gary! I-"

He wasn't there.

I couldn't see any snail with a pink shell.

Instead, I found a trail of goo.

I followed the trail with my eyes. I saw that the door was open, and the trail continued downstairs.

"Maybe he got a glass of water?" I said to myself. I chuckled at the rather absurd idea.

So, I stood up. I slowly followed the trail of goo, being careful not to slip on the slippery substance.

Eventually, I reached the doorway. I looked down. The trail of goo got thicker as it went downstairs.

"MEOW!"

The loud shriek pierced the air.

"Oh no, Gary?" I thought to myself. Was Gary in trouble?

I got so worried that I stepped on the goo and slipped. I slid down the stairs, feeling every step hit my back as I did so. After a few seconds, I was on the first floor of my home.

"Ah, that hurt." I said as I rubbed the back of my head. I had hit my head on the last step particularly hard.

The place looked gloomy. Usually, it would be the happiest place on Earth. Here, I had many sleepovers with my friends. With Patrick, Sandy, and Gary. And even with Mr. Krabs and Squidward. We watched many movies and laughed together. With all my friends here, this place made me feel like the luckiest guy alive.

But now, without anyone here, without Gary here, it was lonely.

I saw the trail of slime continue and lead outside my home. The front door was open. Did Gary open the door by himself?

I followed the trail. As I got closer to the doorway, I looked at the sky.

I don't know if I just didn't notice it when I looked outside the window in my bedroom, or if I was still dizzy because I hit my head on the stairs, but the sky looked weird. The sky wasn't blue and filled with flower-shaped clouds like it should be. Instead, it was blood-red.

That color. I never ever wanted to see it again. It made me remember things.

Also, the sky was plagued with black smoke. The sky looked dead. It brought shivers down my spine.

I ran outside.

Suddenly, fear filled my body. Just like the clouds, my surroundings looked grim. Where there used to be flowers, there were weeds. I looked to my right. Where the homes of my friends Squidward and Patrick should have been, there were ruins, looking as bleak and as dead as everything else.

"Gary, where are you? What's happening?"

I walked down the road. Then, I saw them.

A huge group of people. Some of them were in rags, but most were in an official looking uniform. It was as if they were going to war.

But no, they weren't. They were just walking. Their heads were looking down, and their hands were hanging from their bodies.

"Zombies?"

I tried to laugh at another absurd thought. But I couldn't. How could I laugh right now?

"Get me out of here!" I shouted to the sky.

I've never felt so hopeless.

Well, there was one other time. No, that day was even more painful.

I wished that I would just fall asleep and never wake up. Maybe I would dream a wonderful dream and forget that this ever happened.

But no. I couldn't. Gary, my pet and my friend, was still out there, probably suffering as I struggled and failed to fight fear.

I stood up. I stopped thinking about myself.

I don't care if this is the last thing I will ever do.

I don't care if anything happened to me.

I had to find Gary.


End file.
